Unit 0 Vocab

1.     Adaptation: a change or the process of change by which an organism or species becomes better suited to its environment.

2.     Biodegradable: a substance or object capable of being decomposed by bacteria or other living organisms.

3.     Biodiversity: the variety of life in the world or in a particular habitat or ecosystem.

4.     Biofuel: a fuel derived directly from living matter like corn, which makes ethanol.

5.     Blizzard: a severe snowstorm with high winds and low visibility.

6.     Canals: an artificial waterway constructed to allow the passage of boats or ships inland or to convey water for irrigation.

7.     Cash Crop: a crop produced for its commercial value rather than for use by the grower. Some examples are coffee and tobacco.

8.     Climate Change: a change in global or regional climate patterns, in particular a change apparent from the mid to late 20th century onwards and attributed largely to the increased levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide produced by the use of fossil fuels.

9.     Cold Wave: a prolonged period of abnormally cold weather

10. Cyclone: a system of winds rotating inward to an area of low atmospheric pressure, with a counterclockwise (northern hemisphere) or clockwise (southern hemisphere) circulation.

11. Deforestation: permanent destruction of forests in order to make the land available for other uses.

12. Desalination: the removal of salts and minerals from a target substance such as water or soil.

13. Drought - a prolonged period of abnormally low rainfall, leading to a shortage of water.

14. Earthquake - a sudden and violent shaking of the ground, sometimes causing great destruction, because of movements within the earth's crust or volcanic action.

15. Ecotourism - tourism directed toward exotic, often threatened, natural environments, intended to support conservation efforts and observe wildlife.

16. Famine - extreme scarcity of food, usually due to environmental factors such as drought.

17. Flooding - the covering or submerging of normally dry land with a large amount of water.

18. Fossil Fuels - a natural fuel such as coal or gas, formed in the geological past from the remains of living organisms.

19. Heat Wave - a prolonged period of abnormally hot weather.

20. Hurricane - a storm with a violent wind, in particular a tropical cyclone in the Atlantic.

21. Hydroelectricity: form of energy that uses the power of water in motion using waterfalls or dams.

22. Indigenous: originating or occurring naturally in a particular place; native.

23. Irrigation: the supply of water to land or crops to help growth, typically by means of channels.

24. Modification: the transformation of a structure or an environment from its original anatomical form during development or evolution.

25. Non-renewable Resources: natural substance that is not replenished with the speed at which it is consumed. It is a finite resource.

26. Reforestation: the process of replanting an area with trees.

27. Renewable Resources: resources can be sustained naturally or can be sustained, the opposite of non-renewable.

28. Sedimentation: tendency for particles in water or fluid to settle when it reaches a barrier.

29. Seismic: relating to earthquakes or other vibrations of the earth and its crust.

30. Slash and Burn: method of cultivation in which forests are burned and cleared for planting.

31. Sustainable Development: economic development conducted without depletion of natural resources

32. Syncretism: the merging of different religions, cultures, or schools of thought.

33. Subsistence Farming: farmers grow food crops to feed themselves and their families.

34. Terraced Farming: is a method of farming that consists of different "steps" or terraces where water and nutrients trickle down the steep hills to the awaiting crops.

35. Tornado: a mobile, destructive vortex of violently rotating winds having the appearance of a funnel-shaped cloud and advancing beneath a large storm system.

36. Tropical Storm: a localized, very intense low-pressure wind system, forming over tropical oceans and with winds of hurricane force.

37. Tsunami: a long high sea wave caused by an earthquake, submarine landslide, or volcanic eruption.

38. Typhoon: a tropical storm in the region of the Indian or western Pacific oceans.

39. Vertical Climate Zones: tropical regions, which indicate specific patterns of elevated growth in Latin America countries.